November 2004, Number 148 RRP $2.95 ISSN 1038-3697 Melbourne‘s combined tram services œ page 6 Table Talk is published monthly by the Australian Association Of Timetable Collectors Inc. [Registration No: A0043673H] as a journal covering recent news items. The AATTC also publishes The Times covering historic and general items. Editor: Duncan MacAuslan, 19 Ellen Street, Rozelle, NSW , 2039 œ (02) 9555 2667, dmacaus1@ bigpond.net.au Editorial Team: Graeme Cleak, Lourie Smit. Production: Geoff Lambert, Chris London and friends. Secretary: Steven W ard, 12/1219 Centre Road, South Oakleigh, VIC, 3167 (03) 9540 0320 AATTC on the web: www.aattc.org.au, email: aattc@ ozemail.com.au Original material appearing in Table Talk may be reproduced in other publications, acknowledgement is required. Membership of the AATTC includes monthly copies of The Times , Table Talk, the distribution list of TTs and the twice-yearly auction catalogue. The membership fee is $45.00 pa. Membership enquiries should be directed to the Membership Officer: Dennis McLean, 53 Bargo Street, Arana Hills, Qld, 4054, - (07) 3351 6496. Top Table Talk: • Melbourne tram routes combined œ page 6 • Perth‘s Clarkson station opens œ pages 5 and 11 • New Brisbane train timetables œ page 5 Keeping the Public Informed BY ALLAN YATES, State Transit, Manager Media "W e aim to be a one-stop shop for everything that & Communications. Originally published in The the passenger needs, from being able to acquire Transit Times, Issue 2, October 2004. timetable information to awareness of their bus stop and what services are at their stop," Paul Have you ever sat at or driven by a bus stop and said. wondered whose job it is to maintain Sydney's 8,500-odd bus stops. "W e try to eliminate a lot of the confusion that can exist. W hat I want to do is improve the perception W hether you want to call it public of State Transit by improving the quality of communications, passenger information or just information that's out there." plain crowd control – it's a big job keeping our customers up to speed with the latest timetable Paul said that getting the information out is a real and service information on State Transit bises and State Transit team effort. ferries. "W e deal with the depots to get data, liaise with That job falls to State Transit's Passenger operations managers to ensure the detail is Information Group. correct, get it produced and get it out," he said. Just collating, editing and producing 2 million- "Coming from an operational background has timetables each year must be eye-glazing. Then been good. It has given me a good idea of what there is the updating and maintenance of travel the passengers want, what the depot staff see information of the 8,500 bus stops around and hear on the bus and provided me with a few Sydney. Then there's the production of special new ideas to bring in the area. event route maps. And then there's the "It would be great to make the information maintenance of 190 full-colour bus displays available to all groups such as sight and hearing throughout the Sydney CBD. impaired passengers. Yes, it is a big job – all with a staff of seven. "There's a lot of stuff in the pipeline which we The Passenger Information Group is part of the would like to achieve, but that is still subject to Service Development Division in State Transit's discussions with various stakeholders." Corporate Office. Manager of the section for the past six months is Paul McCabe, formerly Operations Administrator at W illoughby depot. For the Record Contributors Tony Bailey, Chis Brownbill, Derek Cheng, Jennings, Peter Jones, Earl King, Julian Anthony Christie, Graeme Cleak, Michael Coley, Mathieson, Michael Marshall, John Mikita, Peter Ian Cooper, Ken Davey, Adrian Dessanti, Graham Murphy, Len Regan, Graeme Reynolds, Scott Duffin, Noel Farr, Neville Fenn, Paul Garred, Alan Richards, Lourie Smit, Tris Tottenham, Craig Gray, Steven Haby, Craig Halsall, Robert W atkins, Roger W heaton, David W hiteford. Henderson, Albert Isaacs, Bob Jackson, Matthew Table Talk November 2004 Page 3 General • Clearer base UBD map cCopyrighted 2002 Adelaide • Clearer lines and clearer legend • An updated figure showing the percentage of Adelaide timetables - A new Metro Guide dated wheelchair accessible buses in our Adelaide 17 October 2004 is now available. Some of the Metro fleet- there are currently 43% buses that changes include: are wheelchair accessible. • Directional arrows showing where Park and Rides are on the Interchange maps. • Virginia Town inset map for route 900 Rail although a complete electronic re-issue was National made, no paper copies were printed. ARTC issued new W orking Time Tables for its CityRail reprinted its entire Greater Sydney non-NSW systems, effective 25 July 2004, System WTT, Books 1 and 2 in September. This although they did not appear on ARTC's web site was associated with some system changes until early October. including, it seems, the MacDonaldtown storage As of Sunday 25th of July, trip times on the north sidings. It was produced in hard-copy form only. and south bound Sydney œ Melbourne XPT CityRail also issued, via its website, and in paper services have been revised. All departure times form, Book 3 of the July 2004 Sydney W TT. from Sydney and Melbourne remain the same. Approx 40 minutes has been added to the running Victoria time of services to counter recent problems with Version 1 Jan 2004 M>Train pocket timetables for late running. This has led to a reduction in the turn Spotswood (incorporating Yarraville & Seddon); around time of some services in Melbourne, from Clayton (incorporating Huntingdale) neither the 90minutes to approx 60minutes. Bus services 1620 or 1745 trains from Flinders St are marked connecting of these trains have also been with N to indicate they don't stop at Huntingdale; affected. The 5 connecting bus services at South Kensington Cootamundra have all had timetable adjustments made, which has been done by delaying the Connex have begun to issue new booklet departure of these services by 40 mins. timetables, effective October 2004. For the Frankston/Stony Point Line booklet key NSW observations are: • Timetable Changes: 05:22 Pakenham - A new booklet Accessing CityRail dated June Flinders St weekdays now stops at Malvern, while 2004 is an 80 page guide to the accessibility of Late-night services on both W eekdays and CityRail services, and after some general Saturdays are shown running via the loop - the information pages mainly consists of an Jan 2004 reprints showed services after 23:30 alphabetical list of all CityRail stations with their running direct account of Spencer St works, facilities. A looseleaf copy of the new network however normal Saturday service resumed on map is included at the back of the guide. 14/8/04, only W eeknight services are now Also new is Rail Clearways brochure from effected RailCorp, outlining the Rail Clearways projects • Formatting: Blue style Metlink cover as announced earlier in the year. The brochure is in featured on the M>Train reprints, still with a photo DL size fold-out format and is dated September of a M>Train Comeng, Introduction pages are 2004. now in a layout like Fares & Travel Guide, and are portrait not landscape. There are no filler pages, NSW RailCorp has issued Version 1 of a new so in some cases the table for the next day(s) is SW TT, effective 28 November 2004. It is, to all straight underneath. There are promotions for intents and purposes, a standard RailCorp both SMS timetables and SMS updates, but no product, even though it applies mostly to the commercial ads ARTC system. It appears that SW TT production • Timetables: Still landscape, but are a new will continue under the auspices of RailCorp and style with gridlines for the station names rather not be transferred to ARTC. RailCorp also issued, than trip columns. From City tables shows the in early September, version 1.2 of its July 2004 final destination of non-line services between SW TT. The changes were very minor and, Caulfield & City (e.g. To Pakenham) A new page Table Talk October 2004 Page 4 is now started after the loop changes direction on • Northcote/ Merri/ Rushall weekdays • Oakleigh • Bus Connection Section: Update with • Pascoe Vale/ Strathmore/ Glenbervie changed operator details & new routes. • Reservoir/ Regent/ Preston • Maps: The line & network maps are updated • Royal Park/ Flemington Bridge/ Macaulay to show City Saver Zone & Host Station • St Albans/ Ginifer/ Albion Other new Connex train timetables effective • Sandringham/ Hampton October, 2004: • Spotswood/ Yarraville/ Seddon • Alamein • Sunshine/Tottenham • Belgrave/ Lilydale • Surrey Hills • Broadmeadows/Upfield Lines. • Upfield/ Gowrie • Epping Line • Victoria Park/ Collingwood/ North Richmond/ • Glen W averley W est Richmond • Hurstbridge • W atergardens/ Keilor Plains • Pakenham/Cranbourne Lines (No mention of • W illiamstown/ W illiamstown Beach/ North closed General Motors). W illiamstown • Sandringham • W erribee/W illiamstown Queensland As intimated last month new QR Citytrain As part of the reprinting of timetables Connex are timetables commenced from Monday 18 October. also beginning to reprint pocket timetables, also The following services have been added: dated October 2004; with station names in grey • Departing Central 1611 to Ferny Grove station names, blue Connex and black stripe, (W eekday only). metlink logo and picture of old M>train Comeng • on them: Departing Mitchelton 1628 to Central and continuing to Cleveland (W eekday only). • Ascot Vale/ Newmarket/ Kensington • Departing Central 1601 to Nambour • Belgrave/ Tecoma/ Upwey (W eekday only). • Bell/ Thornbury/ Croxton • Departing Robina 0559 to Central (W eekday • Bentleigh/ McKinnon/ Ormond • only).